M^^^^^^^^--^ 


STORIES  FOB  CHILDHOOD. 

OEIGINAL  AND  SELECTED. 


€RPEAN    B€¥'S    TfilALS. 

LITTLE    DeG    TRUSTY,    &c.    &c< 

CHARLES    AND    EMILY. 

FAITHFUL    WALTER. 

TRUE    BENEVOLENCE. 

THE    CARRIER    PIGEON. 

ANNA'S    TRIALS. 

JOHN'S    ABVENTURES. 

WENDELINE    AND    HER   LADY-BUS 


UCS8  liBRARY 
FAITHFUL    \fALTER, 

AND 

THE    INCENDIARY. 


HOW  DIVINE  PROVIDENCE  SOMETIJIES  ACCOMPLISHES  GREAl 
EVENTS  THROUGH  THE  MEDIUBI  OF  CHILDREN. 


SELECTED    BY   MRS.  COLMAN. 


WORCESTER: 

PUBLISHED  BY  EDWARD  LIVERMORE. 

CINCINNATI :  J.  A.  &  U.  P.  JAIVIES. 

1849. 


^i  fl-ik 


-Sim  \Hn 


FAITHFUL    WALTER. 


CHAPTER    I. 

"How  many  hands  will  you  have  in  the  hay- 
field  to-day  ?  "  said  I,  one  morning  at  breakfast,  to 
my  host,  farmer  Trimmer,  under  whose  roof  I  had 
been  lodging  for  more  than  a  twelvemonth. 

"  How  many,  sir  ?"  replied  the  farmer;  "  why,  as 

many  as  we  can  possibly  muster,  you  may  be  sure ; 

for  I  never  in  all  my  life  had  so  much  hay  down 

together  as  I  have  just  now.     If  we  had  but  more 

hands,  three  days  of  this  hot  sun  and  lovely  breeze 

would  make  it  all  safe  for  us.     But  the  quicksilver 

is  settling  down  this  morning  I  see,  so  we   can't 

expect  this  fine  weather  to  last  many  days  longer^ 

Well,  we  must  work  hard  while  we  have  it,  and 

hope  for  the  best.    Let  me  see, — there  will  be  seven 

of  our  own  people,  and  those  six  new  men  I  hired 

yesterday,  and  if  you  reckon  nephew  Walter,  here, 

and  myself  to   make  one  more  between  us,  there 

will  be  fourteen  all  together." 

Now  the  farmer  spoke  very  modestly  of  his  own 
1# 


6  FAITHFUL   WALTER. 

powers,  when  he  said  this ;  for  thougli  "  Nephew 
Waher"  was  a  slight-made  lad  of  about  thirteen, 
James  Trimmer  himself  was  a  man  of  such  unusual 
proportions  and  strength,  that  he  could  easily  do  as 
much  work  as  any  two  of  his  laborers. 

"  Fourteen  we  shall  be  all  together,  and  I  wish  we 
were  forty,''^  continued  the  farmer  ;  "  but  perhaps 
my  good  woman  and  the  maids  will  come  out  and 
handle  the  forks  by-and-by." 

"  Not  we,  indeed  !  "  replied  Mrs.  Trimmer,  "  till 
we  have  finished  our  own  work,  at  any  rate.  How 
are  the  victuals  for  fourteen  hungry  people  to  be 
got  ready,  if  we  go  a  haymaking,  I  should  like  to 
know  ? " 

"  Then  I  shall  be  the  only  idle  person  on  the 
premises,"  said  I  to  m.yself;  ''perhaps  the  only 
thoroughly  idle,  useless  being  within  ten  miles  of 
us.  To  be  sure  I  am  not  very  strong,  nor  used  to 
hard  work  ;  but  at  haymaking-time  anybody  can 
be  useful,  and  I  could  do  as  much  as  little  Walter 
there,  at  any  rate.  Come,  I  will  try  to  spend  one 
day  of  my  life  usefully  and  industriously." 

So,  telling  Mr.  Trimmer  that  he  had  made  a 
mistake  in  his  reckoning,  and  that  he  would  have 
one  more  haymaker  in  his  employ  than  he  expected, 
I  accompanied  him  into  the  field,  where,  under  the 
tuition  of  my  friend  Walter,  I  soon  learned  to  per- 
form my  part  very  much  to  my  own  satisfaction. 


WALTERS    PARENTS. 


Here  I  must  introduce  my  young  friend  more 
particularly  than  by  merely  saying  that  he  was 
James  Trimmer's  nephew.  His  father,  a  poor 
hard-working  curate,  preaching  two  or  three  ser- 
mons a  week,  and  with  difficulty  maintaining  his 
family  upon  an  income  which  did  not  amount  to 
the  yearly  earnings  of  a  skilful  journeyman  tailor 
or  shoemaker,  had  died  when  little  Walter  was 
about  two  years  old.  His  wife  soon  followed  her 
husband,  and  as  she  had  offended  her  own  family 
by  her  imprudent  choice,  poor  Walter  was  left 
Avithout  a  friend  or  protector  in  the  wide  world, 
except  his  uncle  and  aunt  Trimmer.  Now  this 
early  bereavement,  unfortunate  in  most  instances, 
had  proved  a  blessing  to  the  little  boy ;  for  which 
is  the  most  enviable  condition,  that  of  a  very  poor 
curate's  son,  or  of  a  thriving  farmer's  nephew  and 
adopted  child  ?  It  is  true  that  as  the  former  he 
would  have  had  more  right  to  the  title  of  gen- 
tleman ;  but  give  me  well-fed  and  warmly-clad 
respectability,  rather  than  starving  and  half-ragged 
gentility.  And  I  mean  to  show  that  Walter,  though 
his  working  clothes  were  of  coarse  texture,  and  his 
shoes  were  often  adorned  by  half  a  pound  weight 
of  hob-nails,  had  nevertheless  principles  and  feel- 
ings that  would  have  done  honor  to  any  station  ir 
!ife.  Neither  was  he  so  deficient  in  learning  a& 
loys  of  his  class  usually  are;  for  his  uncle,  wh 


8  FAITHFUL  WALTER. 

had  received  some  education  himself,  was  too  sen- 
sible of  the  advantages  he  had  derived  from  it,  to 
neglect  his  nephew  in  this  respect.  So  the  long 
winter  evenings  were  spent  by  Walter  very  plea- 
santly and  profitably,  in  reading  and  writing,  and 
in  learning  the  first  roles  of  arithmetic. 

But  after  a  few  years'  instruction  there  followed 
a  consequence  which  the  farmer  had  himself  fore- 
seen, and  had  predicted  to  his  wife  very  soon  after 
lio  had  taken  upon  himself  the  office  of  tutor  to  his 
nephew.  The  intelligent  child  had  imbibed  all  the 
Aearning  the  teacher  had  it  in  his  pov/er  to  impart^ 
and  longed  for  more. 

At  this  crisis,  when  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Trimmer  were 
debating  whether  tliey  could  make  up  their  minds 
to  part  with  their  nephew,  and  send  him  for  a  year 
or  two  to  a  school  in  the  neighboring  town,  I 
ftrst  became  an  inmate  of  their  comfortable  abode. 
Compelled  by  ill  health  to  give  up  my  profession, 
and  10  take  refuge  in  the  genial  climate  of  our 
southern  coast,  I  had  spent  several  weeks  in  ram- 
bling about,  seeking  for  a  quiet  resting-place,  and 
finding  none  exactly  suited  to  my  wishes.  One 
place  was  too  public,  another  too  lonely  and  out  of 
the  world,  even  for  such  a  lover  of  retirement  as 
myself;  and  many  situations,  though  agreeable  in 
other  respects,  were  far  too  expensive  for  jny  very 
slender  income. 


FIRST   ACQUAINTANCE.  9 

One  afternoon,  during  my  uncertain  wanderings, 
as  I  was  sitting  on  a  stile,  contemplating  a  glorious 
ocean-view,  and  inhaling  with  delight  the  perfumed 
sea-breeze  that  blew  softly  over  the  land,  I  was 
startled  from  my  musings  by  a  voice  behind  me, 
very  civilly  requesting  permission  to  pass  by.  I 
stepped  aside  to  comply,  and  then  my  acquaintance 
with  little  Walter  Trimmer  commenced. 

There  was  something  wonderfully  engaging  in 
the  boy's  manner  and  appearance.  Though  not 
absolutely  handsome,  the  expression  of  his  face 
combined  so  much  intelligence  with  the  greatest 
simplicity  and  innocence,  that  the  absence  of  per- 
fect beauty  and  regularity  of  feature  was  forgotten. 
His  was  a  face  on  which  the  finger  of  the  Creator 
had  written,  in  characters  not  to  be  misunderstood, 
"  Trust  me,  try  me  ;  I  cannot  deceive  you." 

As  in  our  pilgrimage  through  this  world  of 
deceit  and  treachery^,  such  a  perfectly  ingenuous 
countenance  as  I  have  attempted  to  describe  does 
not  often  refresh  our  sight,  I  determined  to  make 
an  acquaintance  with  its  owner,  and  accordingly  I 
entered  into  conversation  with  Walter,  who  soon 
became  very  sociable  and  communicative.  He 
showed  me,  at  the  distance  of  about  half-a-mile, 
the  chimneys  of  his  uncle's  house,  peeping  up 
behind  a  farest  of  apple-trees,  and  as  it  lay  nearly 
in  my  way  to  the  little  village  where  I  lodged,  I 


10  FAITHFUL    WALTER. 

determined  to  accompany  my  new  acquaintance 
there.  I  asked  Walter  if  he  thought  his  aunt 
would  spare  me  a  little  milk. 

"  Yes,  I  am  sure  she  will,  sir,"  replied  he ;  "  and 
you  can  have  it  fresh  and  warm  from  the  cow,  for 
it  is  just  about  milking-time.  Or,  if  you  like  it 
better,  aunt  will  give  you  a  glass  of  ale,  or  of  cider. 
Oh,  such  capital  cider  we  make,  sir  !  Uncle  often 
says  that  ours  is  the  very  best  cider  in  all  Devon- 
shire. Aunt  always  gives  me  a  good  large  cup 
full  with  my  supper  :  aunt  is  very  kind  to  me,  sir ; 
oh,  so  kind  !  and  I  am  sure  she  will  be  glad  to 
give  you  anything  to  eat  or  drink  you  like.  Only 
I  must  tell  you  one  thing ;  you  must  not  do  what 
some  very  fine  grand  ladies  did  a  little  while  ago." 

Here  my  little  talkative  friend  paused,  and  looked 
rather  confused ;  .so  I  enquired  what  these  fine 
grand  ladies  had  been  guilty  of. 

"  Why,  they  came  as  you  are  going  to  do  now, 
sir,"  replied  Walter,  "  and  asked  for  some  milk ; 
and  aunt  gave  them  some,  of  course  and  some 
bread  and  butter,  and  some  honey ;  and  what  do 
you  think  they  did,  sir,  when  they  were  going 
away  ?  Why,  they  wanted  to  pay  for  it  I  I  de- 
clare, aunt  looked  downright  angTy.  Her  face  was 
as  red  as  fire  with  anger  ;  and  I  never  in  all  my 
life  saw  her  so  but  once  before,  and  that  was  when 
she  caught  our  boy  Joe  tying  a  squib  to  the  cat's 


MRS.  TRIMMER.  11 

tail.  However,  she  managed  to  keep  quiet  till  the 
ladies  were  outside  of  the  door,  and  then  she  said, 
so  loudly,  that  I  am  pretty  sure  they  heard  her, 
'  When  I  keep  a  public  house  I  '11  hang  out  a 
sign  ! ' " 

I  promised  Walter  that  I  v/ould  not  imitate  the 
conduct  of  these  offending  ladies;  and  now,  crossing 
a  'winding,  narrow  pond  or  moat,  by  a  bridge 
formed  'by  a  prostrate  willow  tree,  we  passed 
through  a  long  avenue  of  magnificent  hollyhocks, 
and  entered  the  house.  My  conductor  showed  me 
into  a  small,  neatly-furnished  parlor,  and  went  to 
call  his  aunt.  As  they  came  along  the  passage,  I 
could  not  help  overhearing  Walter's  description  of 
his  new  acquaintance.  "  He  is  so  pale  and  thin 
and  walks  so  slowly ! " 

I  beheld  in  Mrs.  Trimmer  the  personification  of 
neatness  and  good  order.  Her  round  plump  face 
was  so  radiant  with  benevolence  and  kindness,  that 
I  could  easily  believe  it  would  become  "  as  red  as 
fire  with  anger,"  at  the  sight  of  Joe's  naughty  pyro- 
technic experiment,  or  of  any  other  act  of  inhu- 
manity towards  man  or  beast.  Perhaps  my  sickly 
appearance  and  Walter's  account  of  my  weakness 
interested  the  good  woman's  compassionate  feelings 
in  my  favor,  for  she  received  me  with  the  most  wm- 
ning  kindness,  and  with  genuine  rustic  good  breed- 


12  FAITHFUL   WALTER. 

ing.  Walter  was  immediately  despatched  into  the 
field  for  a  refreshing  draught  of  new  milk. 

As  some  excuse  for  my  intrusion,  I  asked  Mrs. 
Trimmer  if  she  knew  any  person  in  the  neighbor- 
hood who  had  comfortable  lodgings  to  let.  She 
replied  that  there  were  no  regular  lodging-houses 
in  or  near  the  village ;  but  that  she  and  her  husband 
had  been  thinking  of  taking  a  lodger,  if  they  could 
meet  with  one  who  would  be  content  with  humble 
accommodations  and  plain  fare.  As  she  said  this, 
she'' looked  doubtfully,  first  at  the  low  ceiling  and 
simple  furniture  of  the  little  parlor,  and  then  at  my- 
self. No  doubt  she  came  to  the  conclusion  that  the 
man  and  the  apartment  were  not  very  unsuitable 
for  each  other,  for  she  added  : — "  If  you,  sir,  would 
like  to  try  our  -lodgings  for  a  few  weeLs,  and  could 
put  up  with  our  plain  farm-house  victup.is,  I  'm  sure 
I  would  do  my  best  to  make  you  comfortable,  and 
so  would  my  good  man,  for  that  matter." 

So  I  did  try  Mrs.  Trimmer's  lodgings  for  a  month 
or  two,  and  liked  my  quarters  and  my  entertainers 
so  well,  that  I  became  a  yearly,  instead  of  a  weekly 
boarder.  As  for  "  the  plain  farm-house  victuals," 
I  envy  not  the  man  who  could  not  be  content  with 
the  substantial,  wholesome  meals  Mrs.  Trimmer 
provided  for  her  family.  And  to  one  who,  like  my- 
self, had  never  before  tasted  anything  more  genuine 
than  London  "  sky-blue,"  an  unlimited  supply  of 


AN    APOLOGY.  13 

the  richest  milk  and  cream  was  a  delicious  novelty; 
neither  must  I  omit  to  praise  the  "  best  cider  in  all 
Devonshire,"  which  well  deserved  the  name  of 
"  apple-wine.,''^  as  the  good  farmer  delighted  to  call  it. 
Walter  and  I  soon  became  fast  friends ;  and  the 
plan  of  sending  him  to  a  school  was  joyfully  aban- 
doned by  his  uncle  and  aunt,  when  I  told  them  that 
it  would  be  a  pleasure  to  me  to  devote  an  hour  or 
two  in  the  day  to  his  instruction.  Had  I  not  in  this 
manner  been  the  means  of  altering  my  young 
friend's  destination,  I  would  not  have  obtruded  so 
insignificant  a  personage  as  myself  upon  the  read- 
er's notice,  for  I  iiad  rather  be  Walter's  historian 
than  my  own.     Let  us  return  to  the  hay-field. 


CHAPTER    II. 

The  scene  of  our  labors  was  a  large  field,  on  the 
side  of  a  very  gently-rising  ground,  close  to  the  house. 
Here  the  whole  of  Mr.  Trimmer's  haymaking  force 
was  assembled ;  for  the  mowers  had  but  just  finished 
their  part  of  the  work,  and  the  farmer  was  anxious 
that  the  very  heavy  crop  of  grass  should  be  spread 
abroad  to  the  sun  and  wind  as  soon  as  possible. 

Among  the  additional  hay-makers  hired  the  day 
before,  I  could  not  help  noticing  a  man  of  the  most 
repulsive  and  unearthly  aspect  imaginable.  With 
prodigiously  long  legs  and  arms,  he  would  have 
been  as  tall  a  man  as  Mr.  Trimmer,  if  nature  or  an 
accident  had  not  crooked  his  spine,  and  shortened 
his  body  to  about  half  its  proper  proportions.  But 
how  can  I  describe  his  countenance  ?  This  was  so 
fearfully  distorted,  and  the  nose  and  mouth  were 
thrust  so  much  to  one  side,  that  his  only  remaining 
eye,  which  gleamed  like  a  burning  coal,  really 
appeared  to  be  placed  nearly  in  the  middle  of  his 
face. 

"  That 's  Polyphemus,  sir  ! "  whispered  Water  to 
me,  remembering  the  description  of  the  King  of  the 
Cyclops,  in  one  of  my  books,  which  he  had  lately 
been  reading.     I  found,  on  inquiry,  that  this  man 


JOE    BRINDLE.  15 

had  out  lately  appeared  in  the  neighborhood,  and 
that  very  little  was  known  about  him,  except  that 
his  name  was  Joe  Brindle,  and  that  he  had  several 
times  given  proof  that  his  disposition  was  as  savage 
as  his  appearance.  Some  incendiary  misdeeds  of 
his  were  also  talked  about,  and  I  was  surprised  that 
the  farmer  would  employ  such  a  man.  "  Why,  sir, 
I  believe  he  's  a  bad  fellow,"  said  he  ;  "  but  he  is  a 
capital  hand  for  the  w^ork ;  only  see  how  famously 
he  tosses  his  fork  about,  w^ith  those  long  arms  of 
his  !  I  don't  much  like  the  man,  but  when  laborers 
are  scarce,  we  must  not  look  too  closely  at  them. 
At  haymaking-time  Vv'e  are  glad  to  get  anybody." 

For  more  than  two  hours,  I  continued  using  my 
fork  very  steadily,  following  "  in  the  wake,"  as 
sailors  say.  of  Walter  and  his  uncle,  for  the  sake  of 
an  occasional  word  of  instruction  or  encouragement. 
But  before  noon  I  was  compelled  to  give  up;  though 
very  desirous  of  making  a  whole  day^s  work  of  it, 
the  unusual  exertion,  and  the  intense  heat  of  the 
sun,  entirely  exhausted  my  small  measure  of 
strength,  and  made  me  retreat  to  a  shady  corner  at 
the  upper  end  of  the  field,  where,  reposing  on  the 
grass,  I  contemplated  the  busy  scene  before  me. 

I  do  not  believe  that  I  slept,  because  between  the 
undoubted  reality  of  the  scene  and  the  visionary 
character  of  what  follov/ed  there  was  the  most  per- 
fect connection,  v\'Jthout  a  moment's  forgetfulness* 


16  FAITHFUL    WALTER. 

The  fearful  and  fiery  appearances  that  troubled  my 
sight,  were,  no  doubt,  the  delirious  imaginings  of  a 
brain  half  roasted  by  an  unusual  exposure  to  the 
fierce  heat  of  the  sun.  I  am  convinced  that  I  was 
suffering  from  a  slight  "  coup  de  soleil ;"  but  it  is 
not  easy  to  understand  why  the  events  that  really 
took  place  soon  afterwards,  s.iould  have  been  in 
some  measure  foreshown  in  this  vision,  or  trance, 
or  whatever  the  reader  may  please  to  call  it. 

I  continued  gazing  at  the  bdsy  group  of  hay- 
makers, slowly  moving,  in  two  zigzag  ranks,  across 
the  field.  One  body  was  headed  by  the  stout 
farmer,  followed  by  his  nephew  and  his  servants; 
and  the  other  rank  was  composed  of  the  six  stran- 
gers, including  "  Polyphemus."  For  some  time 
everything  went  on  very  quietly  and  orderly.  Pre- 
sently Walter  began  to  appear  fidgety  and  uneasy; 
and  at  last  he  said  to  Mr.  Trimmer : 

"  Uncle  !  uncle  James !  I  am  sure  it  is  so.  I 
saw  it  then  quite  plainly :  only  look  when  he  passes 
us  ag-ain." 

"  Nonsense,  lad  !  thou  art  dreaming,  or  if  it  did 
smoke  a  little,  it  was  from  the  heat  of  this  burning 
sun,  I  suppose  :  I  am  half  on  fire  myself." 

"  But  v/hy  should  it  smoke  and  crackle,  when  he 
treads  upon  it  ?  Oh,  frightful !  Look  at  his  shoes, 
uncle  !  Only  look  at  the  bottoms  of  his  shoes,  when 
he  lifts  his  feet  up." 


A    STRANGE    HAYMAKER.  17 

**  I  say,  master,"  said  Parsons,  the  farmer's  head 
man,  commg  up  close  to  him,  and  speaking  in  a 
mysterious  tone  ;  "  Master,  I  don't  like  that  Brin- 
dle's  way  of  making  hay  at  all !  Don't  ye  see  how 
it  smokes  when  he  kicks  it  about  wnth  his  feet,  \xi 
that  strange  fashion  :  depend  upon  it,  there  's  some- 
thing wrong  about  that  fellow  : — look  at  his  shoes, 
master ! — look  at  those  great  iron  heels  on  his 
shoes  ! " 

"  Ha,  well,  they  do  look  as  if  they  were  rather 
hot,  to  be  sure.  But  this  sun  dazzles  my  eyes  so. 
Well,  well,  as  I  told  Mr.  Ernest  this  morning,  when 
men  are  scarce  we  mustn't  look  at  them  too  closely, 
for  at  these  times  we  are  glad  of  anybody.  Come, 
my  lads,  keep  moving." 

Parsons  fell  back  into  his  place,  but  appeared 
dissatisfied  ;  and  I  determined,  notwithstanding  the 
farmer's  advice,  to  look  very  closely  indeed  at  Poly- 
phemus and  his  extraordinary  method  of  making 
hay.  Walter  and  Parsons  were  right.  The  green 
grass  certainly  smoked  and  fizzed,  under  the  long- 
legged  m.onster's  feet;  and  when  he  passed  near 
me.  I  saw  with  horror  that  the  large  iron  heels  of 
his  shoes  were  not  merely  red-hot,  but  absolutely 
glowing  and  sparkling  Avith  intensity  of  heat.  Pre- 
sently, a  lock  of  hay,  which,  in  his  strange  antics,  he 
had  kicked  aloft  into  the  air,  actually  took  fire,  and 
before  it  reached  the  ground,  was  entirely  consumed. 


IS  FAITHFUL    WALTER. 

*'  Hallo  !  Brindle  ! "  exclaimed  the  farmer,  who 
now  seemed  convinced  that  mischief  was  in  the 
wind ;  "  I  say,  Brindle,  let  us  have  no  more  of 
that;  do  you  hear  ? — I  can't  afford  to  have  my  hay 
wasted  in  that  way." 

"  I  can't  help  it,"  replied  he  of  the  fiery  heel,  in 
a  voice  that  sounded  like  the  lower  notes  of  an  ill- 
played  hassoon.  "  'T  isn't  my  fault,  I  tell  you.  The 
foolish  shoemaker  luould  put  upon  these  shoes,  iron 
heels  that  had  been  made  by  some  new-fangled 
machine  or  other.  I  told  him  that  mischief  would 
come  of  it,  for  all  machines  are  inventions  of  Satan, 
and  they  will  do  their  master's  work  in  some  way 
or  other.  No  wonder  these  heels  are  hot,  though 
they  were  made  a  twelvemonth  ago  !  Confusion 
to  the  inventors  of  all  machines  and  contrivances 
for  taking  the  bread  out  of  the  poor  man's  mouth  !" 

"  Well,  that  beats  everything  ! "  said  the  farmer. 
"  What  does  he  say  ?  Iron  keep  hot  for  a  twelve- 
month !  Well,  well,  it  may  be  so,  though  it  does 
seem  odd,  to  be  sure  :  we  have  got  something  to 
learn  yet,  nephew  Walter ;  but  we  '11  ask  Mr. 
Ernest  all  about  it,  this  evening.  But  as  for  those 
queer  shoes  of  yours,  Brindle,  I  can't  have  my  hay 
burnt  up,  you  know.  So  just  run  down  to  that 
pond,  at  the  bottom  of  the  field,  and  try  if  water 
won't  cool  those  smoking  heels  ;  do  ye  hear  ?" 

The  man  obeyed,  muttering  a  fresh  malediction 


SUSPICIOUS    PHENOMENON.  19 

upon  all  machines  and  their  inventors,  while  the 
farmer  and  his  men  stood  leaning  on  their  forks, 
waiting  to  see  what  would  take  place  upon  the 
meeting  of  the  two  adverse  elements,  fire  and 
water.  The  result  was  sufficiently  extraordinary 
to  have  gratified  any  lover  of  the  marvellous,  who 
had  witnessed  it.  When  he  reached  the  pond  or 
moat,  which  separated  the  field  from  the  garden, 
the  man-monster  seated  himself  astride  on  the  wil- 
low-tree bridge,  with  his  long  legs  hanging  down 
on  each  side.  The  instant  his  feet  touched  the 
water,  there  was  heard  a  noise  like  the  roaring  of  a 
thousand  sky-rockets,  and  such  a  dense  volume  of 
steam  rose  up,  that  the  machine-hater  was  almost 
entirely  concealed  by  it.  At  times,  however,  when 
the  breeze  blew  this  curtain  of  vapor  aside,  he 
might  be  seen  swinging  his  arms  and  legs  about, 
after  his  own  extraordinary  manner,  while  his  de- 
moniac laugh  mingled  with  the  roar  of  the  boiling 
cauldron  beneath  him.  Words,  also,  of  strange  and 
fearful  import  were  heard  : 

"  Fire,  fierce  and  inextinguishable  !  The  torch 
of  revenge  to  his  roof,  and  the  sharp  knife  to  his 
throat,  of  the  man  who  shall  dare  to  cheat  the 
laborer  of  his  hire  ! " 

"  Impertinent  fellow  ! "  said  Mr.  Trimmer,  "  what 
does  he  mean  ?  But  I  wish  we  had  never  sent  him 
down  to  the  pond,  for  he  '11  soon  make  the  water  so 


20  FAITHFUL   WALTER. 

hot  that  all  the  eels  will  be  killed.  Poor  things !  I 
fancy  they  are  beginning  to  perspire  in  their  holes 
already." 

"  And  the  water-cresses  ! "  cried  Walter, — "  the 
water-cresses  that  aunt  is  so  fond  of  having  with 
her  supper  !  They  will  all  be  spoilt.  Only  think 
of  that,  uncle  ! " 

"  And  worse  than  that,  master,"  said  Parsons , 
"  ten  times  worse  than  that ;  all  the  pretty  little 
tadpoles  will  be  boiled  to  a  jelly,  and  made  into 
frog-broth,  poor  things  ! " 

"  Shameful ! "  exclaimed  the  farmer.  "  I  can't 
bear  that.  I  am  a  peaceable  man,  but  I  will  protect 
the  tadpoles !  Their  poor  mothers,  the  frogs,  laid 
their  eggs  in  my  pond,  with  the  understanding  that 
the  water  should  always  be  kept  cool  and  comfort- 
able for  -their  children.  'T  is  what  they  call  a 
^breach  of  confidence,''  nephew  Walter,  and  whoever 
is  guilty  of  that  don't  deserve  the  name  of  an  Eng- 
lishman. Follow  me,  my  men,  and  we  '11  soon 
drive  this  fiery-footed  fellow  out  of  the  parish." 

So  the  whole  company,  with  the  indignant  farmer 
at  their  head,  rushed  down  to  the  moat  with  their 
hay-forks  in  their  hands.  Brindle  was  prepared  for 
the  attack.  As  the  formidable  body  of  pikemen 
approached,  gathering  up  his  long  legs  under  him, 
with  a  tremendous  spring  he  leaped  far  over  the 
head  of  the  foremost  man,  who  had  made  an  unsuc- 


A    CHASE.  _  21 

cessful  thrust  at  him  with  his  fork,  and  away  up 
the  field  the  monster  ran  with  the  speed  of  a  grey- 
hound. And  now  the  chase  commenced  in  earnest. 
In  hopes  of  surrounding  the  enemy,  the  farmer  and 
his  men  dispersed  themselves  over  the  field,  shout- 
ing to  each  other,  "  Brindle  with  the  fiery  heel ! 
After  him  !  Down  with  him  !  Death  to  the  incen- 
diary!" 

The  monster's  method  of  progression  was  singu- 
lar. It  was  neither  running,  nor  leaping,  nor  fly- 
ing over  the  ground,  but  a  fearful  and  supernatural 
rolling  I  Stretching  out  his  long  arms  and  legs, 
he  became  an  animated  wheel,  of  which  his  short- 
ened body  formed  the  nave;  and  as  it  revolved  with 
extreme  rapidity,  a  rim  was  supplied  by  a  bright 
band  of  fire  and  sparks  proceeding  from  the  glowing 
heels. 

What  chance  had  human. pursuers  of  overtaking 
such  a  demon-wheel  as  this  ?  None  whatever;  and 
they  soon  wished  that  they  had  not  disturbed  him 
from  his  seat  on  the  bridge,  for  the  incendiary's 
evil  intentions  Avere  now  but  too  apparent.  As  the 
rolling  monster  coursed  rapidly  up  and  down  the 
field,  he  seemed  to  be  trying  to  imitate  the  action 
of  a  haymaking  machine,  his  arms  and  legs  seizing 
the  grass  in  his  course  and  throwing  it  aloft  in  the 
air.  Like  a  haymaking  machine,  but  with  a  differ- 
ence !  for  instead  of  sufiering  the  hay  thus  tossed  up 


22  FAITHFUL   WALTER. 

to  fall  quietly  on  the  ground  behind  it,  this  fearfil, 
machine  set  it  in  a  blaze,  and  its  destructive  coursd 
was  marked  by  a  long  train  of  fire  and  smoke. 
Breathless  with  running,  the  farmer  and  his  men 
ceased  from  the  hopeless  pursuit,  and  stood  in  a 
corner  of  the  field,  contemplating  with  dismay  the 
progress  of  the  incendiary. 

"  'T  is  the  best  crop  of  hay  I  ever  cut  in  my  life," 
exclaimed  the  poor  farmer ;  "  and  this  villain  won't 
leave  us  a  single  blade  of  it." 

"  And  worse  still,  master,"  said  Parsons ;  "  ten 
thousand  times  worse  than  that ! — the  pond  is  all 
dried  up,  and  the  tadpoles  are  left  half  dead  on  the 
mud.  And  as  for  the  eels,  I  don't  believe  there  's 
a  lively  one  among  them  all.  I  asked  one  great 
creature,  as  big  as  my  arm,  who  was  lying  with  his 
head  out  of  his  hole,  how  he  felt  himself  after  his 
hot  bath.  Says  the  eel  to  me,  '  Parsons.  I  am 
ruined  ! — I  'm  boiled,  I  declare  !  The  cook  that 
sliins  me  won't  have  much  trouble  with  the  job. 
She  need  n't  put  any  sand  upon  her  hands  !  I  can't 
move  an  inch  out  of  my  hole,  for  fear  I  should  leave 
my  skin  behind  m.e.  If  I  don't  sue  that  Brindle  for 
damages  at  the  next  sessions,  may  I  be  broiled  and 
eaten  alive  ! '  " 

The  incidents  of  my  vision  now  became  still 
more  confused  and  extravagant.  Walter  declared 
that,  if  nobody  else  would  stop  the  progress  of  the 


THE    SPELL    BROKEN.  23 

fiery-wheel,  he  would  try  what  he  could  do.  Plac- 
ing himself  in  the  monster's  way,  he  was  immedi- 
ately dashed  to  the  ground,  and  arose  with  a  torrent 
of  blood  flowing  from  his  temples. 

"  That 's  just  what  I  wanted,"  said  he  ;  "  there  's 
nothing  like  blood  for  quenching  fire.  'T  is  better 
than  an  ocean  of  water." 

Then  I  saw  that  he  also  became  a  wheel,  spout- 
ing forth  a  crimson  torrent  instead  of  fire ;  and  as 
he  followed  close  in  the  track  of  the  other,  the  train 
of  flame  and  sparks  was  quenched,  till  at  length  the 
discomflted  incendiary  demon,  finding  he  could  do 
no  more  mischief,  rolled  himself  out  of  the  field, 
and  I  saw  him  no  more.  But  in  the  reverberations 
of  a  terrible  thunder-clap,  which  burst  over  head  at 
the  instant  he  disappeared,  I  could  distinguish  the 
words,  "  Confusion  ! — Outwitted  by  a  powerless 
child  ! " 

•  #  ^  ^  ^  * 

I  found  myself  lying  on  the  grass,  surrounded  by 
the  farmer  and  several  of  his  men.  Walter  was 
kneeling  by  my  side. 

**  Don't  drop  the  blood  upon  my  face  !*'  said  I  to 
the  bo}^ 

"Blood,  Mr.  Ernest!  'T  is  water;  we  found 
you  in  a  fainting  fit,  and  uncle  said  that  bathing 
your  face  would  be  the  best  way  to  brins:  vo« 
round  again." 


24  FAITHFUL   WALTER. 

"  Where  did  you  get  the  water  from,  "Walter  ?" 

"  Out  of  the  moat,  sir.  It  is  not  very  clean,  to 
be  sure,  but  it  was  the  nearest  I  could  find." 

"  Then  Brindle  has  not  dried  up  the  water,  after 
all !  And  the  tadpoles  and  the  eels,  eh,  Walter,  are 
they  all  well  and  comfortable  ?  " 

The  boy  laughed,  and  one  of  the  men  whispered 
to  his  companions,  "  The  gentleman  has  been  mak- 
ing free  with  that  cider  keg,  I  am  thinking,  and  the 
liquor  has  been  rather  too  strong  for  him." 

"  Come,  sir,"  said  the  farmer,  "  take  hold  of  my 
arm,  and  let  us  go  into  the  house.  The  work  and 
the  heat  have  been  too  much  for  you.  I  never  felt 
such  a  roasting  sun  in  all  my  life.  You  must  lie 
down  on  the  bed  for  an  hour  or  two,  and  you  will 
soon  be  better." 

J  took  Mr.  Trimmer's  advice,  and  after  a  sound 
sleep  of  some  hours,  I  awoke  with  no  remains  of 
my  sun-stroke  but  a  slight  head-ache.  I  said 
nothing  about  the  strange  spectral  illusions  of  the 
hay-field;  but  when  closely  questioned  by  Walter 
on  the  subject,  I  told  him  I  had  been  in  a  kind  of  a 
trance.  However,  I  assured  my  friends,  that  I  had 
not  been  "  making  free  with  the  cider-keg." 


CHAPTER  III. 

i  MISSED  tne  farmer  at  breakfast  the  next  morn* 
ing,  and  found,  on  inquiry,  that  he  had  mounted  his 
horse  soon  after  day-break,  and  had  galloped  off, 
without  saying  whither  he  w^as  bound,  or  upon 
what  errand.  He  returned  before  we  had  finished 
our  meal,  and  Mrs.  Trimmer  enquired  if  he  had 
been  to  seek  for  more  haymakers. 

•'  Yes,  I  have,  sure  enough,"  replied  he ;  "  and 
I  have  found  one,  and  hired  him;  and  a  famous 
good  hand  he  is  too." 

''One  haymaker,  indeed  !  well,  to  be  sure,  one  is 
just  better  than  none  at  all ;  but  I  was  in  hopes  you 
would  have  brought  back  twenty." 

"  But  the  one  I  have  hired  will  do  the  work  of 
any  twenty  haymakers  in  the  country;  aye,  and  do 
it  better  than  they  would,  into  the  bargain." 

"  The  man  is  dreaming ! "  cried  the  dame. 

"  Uncle  has  been  in  a  trance,  like  you  were  yes- 
terday, Mr.  Ernest,"  said  Walter,  slyly  looking  at 
me. 

"  Hold  your  tongues,  wdfe  and  nephew,  and  I  '11 

tell  you  all  about  it.     As  I  lay  avvake  last  night, 

thinking  how  w^e  should  manage  to  get  in  our  hay 

without  more  hands,  all  of  a  sudden  it  popped  into 

3 


26  FAITHFUL   WALTER. 

my  head  that  Squire  Thornley  had  got  a  haymak* 
ing  machine.  Said  I  to  myself,  '  They  are  earlier 
down  in  that  warm  bottom  than  we  are  here,  by  a 
week  or  more ;  and  I  dare  say  the  squire  has  got 
all  his  hay  in  by  this  time.  I  '11  ride  over  to- 
morrow, and  ask  him  to  lend  me  the  machine  for  a 
day  or  two,  and  then  a  fig  for  these  haymakers.' 
Well,  I  rode  over  to  the  squire's,  and  found  that  he 
was  in  bed,  and  that  he  wouldn't  be  down  for  an 
hour  or  more.  Thinks  I  to  myself,  '  There  's  no 
time  to  be  lost.  He  is  a  kind-hearted  gentleman, 
and  one  that  won't  take  offence  when  none  is 
intended,  and  he  has  seen  enough  of  farming  busi- 
ness himself  to  know  what  it  is  to  be  in  trouble  for 
want  of  hands.  I  '11  venture  to  disturb  him  from  his 
nap.'  So  I  wrote  p.  bit  of  a  note,  and  got  his  man 
to  take  it  up  to  him.  Well,  in  a  minute  or  two, 
down  comes  my  note  again,  and  on  the  back  the  good 
gentleman  had  written  with  a  pencil,  'Yes,  and 
welcome.'  So  that 's  the  clever  haymaker  I  have 
engaged,  and  in  half-an-hour  he  will  be  here.  Well, 
my  good  woman,  what  now  ?  I  think  you  don't 
look  altogether  pleased  about  it." 

"  No,  I  never  am  pleased  Vv-hen  I  hear  of  these 
new  machines,  whether  for  haymaking,  or  thrash- 
ing, or  what  not.  My  father  and  his  father  before 
him  would  never  use  anything  of  the  kind,  and 
they  were  the  best  farmers  in  all  the  county.     Ah 


MACHINERY. 


S7 


Mr.  Ernest,  you  may  smile,  but  depend  upon  it,  sir, 
these  machines  will  be  the  ruin  of  the  country,  in 
spite  of  what  that  book  you  were  talking  about  may 
say  to  the  contrary." 

Mrs.  Trimmer  alluded  to  a  very  clever  little 
work,  called  "  The  Results  of  Machinery,"  which 
had  been  sent  to  me  in  a  packet  of  other  literary 
food,  by  a  kind  friend  in  London. 

"  Aunt  will  never  agree  with  the  man  who  wrote 
that  book,"  said  Walter ;  "  and  yet  she  uses  ma- 
chines every  day  of  her  life." 

"  That 's  right,  Walter,"  said  Mr.  Trimmer. 
"  That 's  a  good  boy ;  see  if  you  can  bring  your 
aunt  round  to  our  way  of  thinking.  For  my  part, 
I  am  too  busy  eating  to  do  anything  but  listen  to 
you.  Now,  wife,  it  is  your  turn ;  Walter  says  you 
use  machines." 

"/use  a  m.achine  !  no,  never.  I  think  you  must 
be  in  a  trance  now,  Walter," 

"  Well,  aunt,  I  am  sure  that  larrel-churn  of 
yours  is  a  machine,  and  so  are  all  churns.  Only 
fancy  how  cross  Sally,  the  dairymaid,  would  be,  if 
you  were  to  tell  her  that  she  must  nev^er  use  a 
churn." 

"  But  she  could  n't  make  butter  without  some  sort 
of  a  churn,  Walter." 

"  I  think  she  might,  aunt.  If  she  was  to  take  a 
whisk,  and  beat  the  cream  about  for  half  a  day,  I 


28  FAITHFUL   WALTER. 

am  pretty  sure  the  butter  would  come  at  last.  But 
stop,  she  must  not  use  a  whisk,  for  that  is  a  sort  of 
a  machine  too.  So  the  only  thing  she  could  do, 
would  be  to  thrust  those  great  red  arms  of  hers  into 
the  cream,  and  work  them  about  till  she  was  tired. 
Ha !  ha !  I  think  butter  would  soon  be  half-a-crown 
a  pound,  if  people  were  obliged  to  make  it  that 
way." 

"  Well,  then,  I  suppose  we  must  have  a  chum, 
that 's  all.  But  I  never  heard  it  said  that  butter 
was  made  by  machinery  before.  However,  churns 
have  been  used  these  hundreds  of  years,  that 's  one 
comfort,  and  't  is  these  new-fangled  machines  that 
I  dislike." 

"  Capital !  there 's  one  point  gained.  Now, 
nephew  Walter,  now ! "  cried  the  farmer. 

"  Then,  aunt,  there  is  that  patent  cheese-press, 
that  uncle  bought  at  farmer  Bright's  sale,  last  win- 
ter. I  am  sure  that  is  a  machine,  and  quite  a  neW' 
f angled  one  too.  You  must  turn  that  out  of  the 
dairy,  aunt,  and  press  the  cheeses  with  a  board  and 
some  heavy  stones  laid  upon  it.  But  I  suppose  the 
author  of  *  The  Results  of  Machinery,'  would  say 
that  the  board  and  stones  were  machinery  too.  So 
then  the  dairy-maids  must  sit  upon  the  cheeses  day 
and  night,  like  so  many  brood-hens  hatching  their 
eggs,  till  they  were  pressed  dry  enough.  What  a 
num.ber  of  dairy-maids  you  must  have,  aunt !  and 


THE    HAYMAKING    MACHLXE.  29 

only  fancy  a  row  of  about  a  dozen  of  them,  all  sit- 
ting on  their  eggs — on  their  cheeses,  I  mean  ! " 

"  What  nonsense  the  boy  is  talking  ! " 

"  Then  there  is  the  winch  and  chain  at  the  well, 
that 's  another  machine,  aunt ;  and  the  smoke-jack, 
and  the  chaff-cutter,  and  the " 

"  Walter,"  interrupted  the  farmer,  "  cut  me  one 
more  slice  of  bacon,  and  then  I  shall  do  till  dinner- 
time." 

"  I  can't,  uncle  ! "  said  the  boy,  with  a  roguish 
look  at  Mrs.  Trimmer.  "  A  knife  is  a  sort  of  a 
machine,  and  aunt  will  be  angry  if  I  use  one.  Shall 
I  tear  off  a  piece  of  bacon  with  my  fingers,  aunt  ? " 

"  My  patience  ! "  cried  the  good  dame,  rising  up 
from  the  table  ;  "  this  boy  is  getting  a  great  deal  too 
learned  for  me.  I  must  go  and  see  after  those  lazy 
maids  of  mine." 

"  And  I  must  go  and  see  after  my  new  hay- 
maker," said  the  farmer ;  "  he  is  n't  lazy,  at  any 
rate." 

In  a  short  time  this  new  haymaker  arrived,  and 
was  immediately  put  to  Avork  in  the  field;  and 
though  I  had  no  wish  for  another  sun-stroke,  with 
its  accompanying  fiery  vision,  I  could  not  help 
going  out  for  a  short  time,  to  witness  its  perform- 
ance. To  those  who  have  never  seen  a  haymaking 
machine,  a  short  description  may  be  necessary. 

The  principal  part  was  a  long  barrel,  or  roller 


30  FAITHFUL   WALTER. 

covered  with  iron  spikes,  and  mounted  on  a  low 
strong  carriage,  running  on  two  wheels,  which 
were  connected  with  the  spiked  roller  by  wheel- 
work.  But  it  was  so  contrived  that,  when  the 
wheels  turned  round,  the  roller  revolved  much 
faster  than  they  did,  and  it  was  placed  at  such  a 
height  that  the  iron  spikes  almost  touched  the 
ground. 

This  clever  haymaker  did  its  work  beautifully. 
The  machine  was  drawn  slowly  over  the  field  by 
horses,  and  as  the  roller  revolved,  the  spikes  caught 
up  the  hay,  throwing  it  aloft  in  a  finely  divided 
shower,  so  that  every  blade  of  grass  was  separated, 
and  exposed  to  the  drying  influences.  Walter,  who 
had  never  seen  a  haymaking  machine  before,  was 
in  ecstasies.  As  he  examined  the  hay  deposited  on 
the  ground  behind  the  machine,  he  exclaimed, 
"  Look,  uncle  !  only  look  how  beautifully  it  spreads 
it  about !  I  do  hope  that  aunt  will  come  out  by-and- 
by,  and  see  it.  Huzza  !  machinery  forever  !  But 
there  is  aunt,  I  declare,  feeding  the  ducks  in  the 
moat ;  when  she  turns  round  this  way  again  I  '11 
wave  my  hat  to  her.  Now  she  sees  us !  Ah,  and 
she  shakes  her  head  too ;  she  does  n't  like  machinery 
yet,  uncle  James." 

And  there  were  some  others  present  who  held 
the  same  opinions  as  Mrs.  Trimmer.  There  was 
some  low  grumbling  and  angry  looks  among  the 


A    SHABBY    TRICK.  31 

newly-hired  men  ;  and  a  circumstance  soon  occurred 
\vhicli  proved  that  there  was  at  least  one  determined 
enemy  to  machinery  in  the  field  that  day.  For 
presently,  those  who  were  near  the  machine  were 
alarmed  by  a  loud  crash,  while  at  the  same  instant 
a  hay-fork  was  tossed  up  into  the  air  by  the  roller, 
and  Walter  narrowly  escaped  being-  impaled  by  it, 
as  it  fell  to  the  ground.  Fortunately  the  machine 
was  but  little  injured.  Some  of  the  spikes  were 
bent  out  of  their  places,  but  the  smith  could  easily 
set  them  to  rights  in  the  evening,  and  in  the  mean 
time  the  machine  would  perform  its  work  very 
nearly  as  well  as  before. 

"  Master,"  said  Parsons  in  a  whisper  to  the  far- 
mer— "  I  say,  master,  that  fork  was  put  in  the  way 
on  purpose.  If  it  was  n't,  I  '11  eat  it  for  dinner,  iron 
and  all.  I  am  sure  'twas  hid  under  the  hay  on 
purpose  ;  for  I  was  walking  just  before  the  horses. 
and  I  must  have  seen  it,  if  it  had  not  been  covered 
up.  Take  my  word  for  it,  master,  that  Brindle  is 
the  man  that  did  it." 

"  Likely  enough,"  replied  the  farmer ;  "  likely 
enough,  Parsons  ;  but  we  can't  prove  it,  you  know. 
However,  I  wish  we  had  never  hired  him." 

"  Uncle,"  said  Walter,  who  had  been  examining 
the  handle  of  the  fork,  "just  look  here,  uncle  ! " 

"  Well,  lad,  I  see  nothing  there,  but  the  marks 
of  tlie  teeth  of  the  machine." 

; 


32  FAITHFUL    WALTER. 

"  It  is  n't  those  marks  I  mean,  but  just  here,  and 
here  again,  there  are  spots  of  blood,  and  they  are 
hardly  dry  yet.  The  man  that  used  this  fork  last 
has  hurt  his  hand  ;  and  I  think  you  may  find  him 
out  that  way,  for  nobody  has  touched  it  besides  my- 
self, since  the  machine  threw  it  up.  I  have  no  cut 
on  my  hands,  have  I,  uncle  ?  " 

"  That  will  do  the  business  for  us,  I  declare  !  so 
call  all  the  men  together,  Parsons,  and  make  them 
stand  in  a  row.  Well  done,  nephew  Walter !  that 
was  a  lucky  thought :  we  shall  find  the  rogue  out 
this  way,  I  do  believe." 

AVhen  the  men  were  all  assembled,  the  farmer 
addressed  them. 

"  Now,  my  men,"  said  he,  "  I  don't  want  to  accuse 
any  of  you  of  playing  this  shabby  trick,  but  some- 
body must  have  done  it,  you  know.  Now,  then, 
listen  to  me.  If  any  man  has  a  mind  to  confess 
that  he  put  that  fork  under  the  hay,  let  him  step 
forward  and  beg  pardon ;  but  all  of  you  that  declare 
you  know  nothing  about  it,  hold  up  both  your 
hands!"    - 

"  I  was  sure  of  it ! — Thee  an  the  man  I " — cried 
Parsons,  suddenly  flying  at  Polyphemus,  and  grasp- 
ing him  by  the  throat.  *'  Take  hold  of  his  arm, 
master  !  make  him  show  his  hand  agam.  There  ! 
'T  is  all  bloody,  you  see.     Oh,  thou  villain  ! " 

Notwithstanding    the    strong   testimony   of   the 


THE    ROGUE    DETECTED.  33 

bleeding  hand,  Brindle  sulkily  denied  that  he  was 
the  offender.  And,  after  a  little  consideration,  Mr. 
Trimmer  came  to  the  conclusion,  that  if  he  were  to 
take  the  man  before  the  squire,  besides  losing  much 
valuable  time,  he  should  find  it  difficuh  to  prove 
that  he  laid  the  fork  under  the  hay  with  an  evil 
intention.  Parsons  and  some  of  the  men  proposed 
a  ducking  in  the  moat,  but  the  farmer  would  not 
allow  it ;  so  all  the  punishment  Brindle  received 
was  instant  dismissal,  without  his  wages. 

He  departed,  grumbling  like  an  enraged  bear, 
and  one  of  the  men  declared  he  heard  the  words — 
*'  hear  of  me  again  before  you  die  ! " 

"  What  dost  say  ?"  exclaimed  the  indignant  Pai' 
sons,  "  hear  of  thee  again  ! — Likely  enough  ! — 
For  my  part,  I  hope  to  hear  of  thee  swinging  on  a 
gallows,  before  long.  Master,  we  must  look  sharp, 
or  he  '11  do  us  a  mischief  one  of  these  days.  I  've 
heard  say  that  Joe  Brindle,  or  *  Polly  Famous,'  as 
master  Walter  calls  him,  has  been  famous^  sure 
enough,  for  these  sort  of  doings,  before  now." 


CHAPTER    IV. 

.N  three  days  after  the  dismissal  of  Brindle,  by 
the  vahiable  assistance  of  the  machine,  and  by  the 
greatest  exertions  on  the  part  of  men  and  horses, 
Mr.  Trimmer's  hay  was  all  secured,  and  deposited 
in  the  rick-yard,  in  the  form  of  three  prodigious 
haymows.  Not  four  hours  after  the  last  load  had 
been  brought  home,  the  rain,  which  had  been 
threatening  all  day,  began  to  descend,  first,  in  a 
light,  almost  invisible  mist,  increasing  by  degrees 
10  a  heavy,  downright  deluge. 

The  farmer  stood  at  the  window,  contemplating 
his  haymows,  safe  under  the  shelter  of  the  tar- 
paulins, and  prophesying  that  the  wet  weather 
would  last  for  a  week  at  least.  1  was  surprised  to 
observe  that  he  was  in  an  unusually  grave  and 
meditative  mood.  When  I  congratulated  him  on 
his  good  fortune,  he  said  : 

"  Better  than  I  deserve,  sir  !  Far  better  than  I 
deserve  ;  for  I  am  ashamed  to  say  that  I  have  grum- 
bled a  little  sometimes  when  it  has  pleased  God  to 
send  us  such  weather  as  this  before  the  crops  were 
secured.  Mr.  Ernest,  I  have  been  trying  to  think 
hoio  I  should  have  felt,  and  what  I  should  have  saidj 
if  this  Tciin  had  come  yesterday!     Ah!  I  am  not 


ANECDOTE.  35 

half  SO  patient  and  grateful  as  rny  poor  father  was  ! 
He  never  complained  of  too  much  rain,  or  too  much 
drought,  '  for,'  said  he,  '  what  is  bad  for  one  crop 
may  be  good  for  another.'  I  remember  once,  when 
I  was  a  boy,  father  had  got  his  hay  in  that  very 
field  we  have  been  working  in  to-day,  all  beauti- 
fully made,  without  a  drop  of  wet  upon  it,  and  they 
were  just  going  to  begin  to  carry  it  home,  when  all 
of  a  sudden  a  storm  came  up  over  the  water,  down 
came  the  rain,  five  times  harder  than  it  does  now, 
and  in  ten  minutes  every  bit  of  hay  was  entirely 
soaked.  "Well,  sir,  father  came  into  this  very  room, 
(I  remember  I  was  sitting  by  the  fire  at  the  time, 
for  I  was  just  out  of  the  measles,)  he  came  in  smil- 
ing and  cheerful,  and  as  he  took  off  his  dripping 
wet  coat,  he  said  to  me,  '  Ah,  Jemmy,  my  boy !  this 
is  a  lovely  rain  for  the  turnips!'^  That  was  five 
and  thirty  long  years  ago,  Mr.  Ernest,  but  I  have  n't 
forgotten  it  yet.  Well,  my  good  dame,"  continued 
the  farmer  to  his  wife,  who  just  then  entered  the 
room — "  well,  what  dost  say  to  it  now  ? " 
"  Say  to  what,  I  should  like  to  know  ?  " 
"  Why,  to  this  change  of  weather,  and  to  our 
good  luck  in  getting  every  bit  of  our  hay  in  just  in 
time." 

"Well,   I    say   I    am   heartily  glad  of  it,  sure 
enough." 

*  A  fact. 


36  FAITHFUL    WALTER. 

"  But,  aunt,  this  is  one  of  '  the  results  of  ma' 
chinery,^^^  said  Walter. 

"  True  enough,  boy,"  replied  his  uncle ;  "  for 
without  the  help  of  that  machine,  our  hay,  instead 
of  being  snug  under  shelter  there,  would  be  lying 
abroad,  soaking  and  spoiling  in  this  rain.  Now, 
my  good  woman,  confess  !  Machinery  is  n't  such  a 
bad  thing  as  you  thought,  is  it  ?" 

"  Why,  if  no  more  harm  came  of  it  than  this  hay- 
making machine  has  done  just  now,  I  wouldn't 
complain.  But  I  have  heard  of  poor  people  being 
thrown  out  of  work  and  half-starved  by  some  of 
these  new  schemes.  That  '5  the  sort  of  machinery 
I  don't  like." 

"  Now,  nephew  Walter,"  said  the  farmer,  "  come, 
you  shall  go  on  with  ii,  for  I  am  getting  out  of  my 
depth.  But  3^ou  have  read  the  book  through  from 
beginning  to  end.  Now,  then,  what  have  ye  got  to 
say  to  that  ? " 

"  Why,  aunt,  the  author  of  the  book  says  that — 
but  Mr.  Ernest  can  explain  it  a  thousand  times 
better  than  I  can." 

I  told  Waiter  that  I  should  much  rather  hear 
him  go  on  with  the  argument  himself;  so  he  con- 
tinued : 

"  He  says  that,  whenever  a  machine  is  invented 
to  do  any  sort  of  work  quicker  than  it  could  be  done 
by  hand,  it  generally  happens  that  a  good  many 


ARGUMENTS    FOR    MACHINERY.  37 

people  who  used  to  get  their  bread  by  working-  at 
that  trade,  lose  their  employment,  and  of  course  that 
seems  a  bad  thing.  But  then  this  new  machine, 
suppose  't  is  a  machine  for  weaving  cloth,  makes  it 
so  much  cheaper  than  it  could  be  done  by  hand, 
that  people  can  buy  three  or  four  times  as  much  for 
their  money  as  they  did  before.  So  there  's  more 
good  than  harm  done,  you  see,  aunt.  Then,  by-and- 
by,  such  a  quantity  of  this  cheap  cloth,  or  whatever 
the  thing  may  be,  is  used,  that  there  are  more  peo- 
ple wanted  to  manage  the  machines  than  ever 
worked  at  that  trade  before  they  were  invented.  So 
nobody  need  complain." 

As  Walter  paused  in  his  harangue,  I  whispered 
to  him  a  single  word,  which  started  him  off  again 
directly. 

"  Thank  you,  sir  !  I  had  forgotten  all  about  that 
Aunt,  how  would  you  like  that  all  the  books  in  the 
world  should  be  burnt.  Bibles  and  all,  and  that  no- 
body should  be  allowed  to  print  any  more  ?" 

"  Why,  I  should  not  like  it  at  all,  Walter.  What 
is  the  boy  talking  about  now?" 

"  Well,  aunt,  before  the  machine  they  call  a 
printing  press  was  invented,  every  book  was  obliged 
to  be  written  with  a  pen,  and  there  were  a  great 
many  people  who  got  their  living  entirely  by  copy- 
ing books  ;  so  you  may  be  sure  they  were  very  dear 
at  that  time.  But  when  the  printing  machine  was 
4 


3S  FAITHFUL    VVALTEF.. 

invented,  these  copying  people  complained  sadly, 
because  they  had  nothing  more  to  do,  for  the  printed 
books  were  much  neater  than  the  written  ones,  and 
did  n't  cost  half  a  quarter  as  much.  So  almost 
everybody  that  could  read  bought  some  books,  and 
then  they  taught  their  children  to  read  too,  and 
more  books  were  wanted  for  them.  And  though 
the  poor  copiers  lost  their  employment  at  first,  I 
dare  say  they  soon  learned  to  be  printers,  for  so 
many  books  were  wanted  that  the  printing  machines 
could  find  work  for  them  all,  and  for  a  great  many 
more  people  besides." 

"  Well,  boy,"  replied  Mrs.  Trimmer,  "  I  hope  't  is 
all  for  the  best,  but  I  can't  argue  with  thee.  If 
father  was  alive  though,  I  think  he  would  answer 
thee  or  the  man  that  wrote  that  famous  book  either. 
He  would  soon  drive  you  up  into  a  corner,  depend 
upon  it.  But  come,  I  want  thee  to  stop  up  a  rat- 
hole  for  me  in  the  fowl-house,  for  the  vermin  got  in 
last  night  and  sucked  half  a  dozen  eggs." 

"  Uncle  is  going  to  buy  me  a  rat-catching  ma- 
chine^''' said  the  boy,  following  his  aunt,  laughing; 
♦'  and  I  am  to  have  a  penny  apiece  for  all  the  rats 
I  catch.  But  if  our  poor  cats  could  speak,  I  dare 
say  they  would  say  that  it  was  very  unfair  to  do 
their  work  for  them  by  machinery." 

For  several  weeks  after  this  discussion,  nothing 
worth  recording  took  place  at  the  farm,  except  that 


WALTER  S    HUMANITY. 


i9 


Walter's  rat-catcliing  machine,  otherwise  a  coir*non 
gin,  was  procured  from  the  town,  and  soon  gained  a 
very  agreeable  addition  of  pocket-money  for  its 
owner.  But  at  length  a  circumstance  occurred 
which  gave  Walter  a  good  deal  of  uneasiness.  He 
generally  set  his  gin  in  the  barn  at  night,  and  paid 
his  last  visit  to  it  just  before  he  went  to  bed ;  but 
one  morning,  instead  of  seeing  his  usual  penny- 
v/orth  dead  in  its  close  em.brace,  he  was  shocked  to 
find  a  mangled  leg  remaining  in  the  gin,  the  poor 
animal  to  whom  it  had  belonged  having  made  its 
escape.  Now  my  young  friend  had  one  good  qual- 
ity, which,  I  grieve  to  say,  is  very  rare  indeed  with 
boys  of  his  class.  Walter  Trimmer  was  exceedingly 
humane  and  kind-hearted.  Therefore,  when  he 
considered  what  suffering  he  had  been  the  means 
of  inflicting  upon  this  poor  rat,  he  determined  never 
again  to  set  his  gin  at  night,  and  in  the  daytime 
only  when  he  could  have  an  opportunity  of  visiting 
it  frequently.  This  resolution  proved  that  his  hu- 
mane feelings  were  powerful  and  unfeigned,  for  by 
adhering  to  it  he  would  lose  a  great  part  both  of  his 
profits  and  amusement.  For  Walter,  like  other 
boys  of  his  age,  (and  like  many  grown-up  boys 
also,)  took  great  delight  in  rat-catching,  which  he 
esteemed  a  very  noble  and  interesting  sport.  To 
those  who  are  not  of  his  opinion,  and  who  may 
think  that  too  much  has  already  been  said  on  this 


40  FAITHFUL    WALTEK. 

subject,  I  must  apologize,  by  reminding  ihem  that 
important  events  often  arise  from  small  and  insigni- 
ficant causes ;  and  so  it  was  in  this  instance.  To 
preserve  the  regularity  of  the  story,  I  shall  relate  the 
events  that  followed  in  the  order  in  which  they 
occurred,  not  as  they  came  to  my  knowledge. 

One  night,  after  Walter  was  in  bed,  he  suddenly 
remembered  he  had  omitted  to  pay  his  usual  visit  to 
his  gin  before  he  retired  to  rest,  and  that  it  still 
remained  set  in  one  of  the  barns.  What  should  he 
do  ?  He  could  not  sleep  comfortably  with  the  idea 
that,  owing  to  his  neglect,  it  was  quite  possible  that 
an  unfortunate  rat  might  be  caught,  and  be  com- 
pelled to  endure  the  pain  of  a  broken  leg  till  the 
morning.  Then,  on  the  other  hand,  it  was  a  dis- 
mally wet,  blowing  night,  and  the  barn  was  a  con- 
siderable distance  from  the  house.  To  some  boys, 
the  mere  idea  of  going  out  alone  in  the  dark  would 
have  had  its  terrors,  but  Walter  had  no  superstitious 
fears,  and  he  was  constantly  in  the  habit  of  wander- 
ing about  the  premises  by  himself  at  night. 

For  some  time  the  boy  endeavored  to  silence  the 
promptings  of  humanity,  by  thinking,  that  of  all  the 
rats  he  had  ever  caught,  there  was  only  one  that  had 
not  been  put  out  of  its  pain  instantly,  and  it  was 
very  improbable  that  another  instance  of  the  kind 
should  occur  just  at  this  time.  So  he  determined 
to  think  no  more  about  it,  but  to  lie  quietly  till  the 


MIDNIGHT    ADVENTURE.  41 

morning.  But  of  all  the  enemies  of  comfortable 
sleep  an  uneasy  mind  is  the  most  certain  and  unap- 
peasable ;  and  so  poor  Walter  found  it  on  this  occa- 
sion. He  could  not  sleep.  Therefore,  after  vainly 
combating  with  the  enemy  till  past  midnight,  he 
was  obliged  to  yield  at  last ;  so,  putting  on  his 
clothes  in  the  dark,  he  groped  his  way  as  quietly  as 
possible  down  into  the  kitchen,  and  lighted  the  can- 
dle of  a  lantern  at  the  remains  of  the  wood-fire. 

"  Now  then,  if  I  can  but  contrive  to  open  this 
door  quietly  ! "  said  he  to  himself,  as  he  carefully 
drew  back  the  bolts — "  if  uncle  and  aunt  don't  hear 
me,  I  '11  never  tell  them  a  word  about  it,  for  perhaps 
they  would  laugh  at  me  for  what  I  'm  doing.  What 
a  dismally  dark  night !  I  hope  I  shan't  fall  into  the 
moat.  But  it  does  n't  rain  now,  that 's  one  com- 
fort." 

Waller  crossed  the  moat  by  a  tolerably  wide 
bridge  of  planks,  which  connected  the  garden  with 
the  farm-yard.  As  he  passed  over,  he  held  down 
his  lantern  to  ascertain  if  ihe  heavy  rains  had 
raised  the  water  much  above  its  usual  level ;  for  if 
this  were  the  case,  he  knew  that  he  should  have  the 
pleasure  in  the  morning  of  opening  the  flood-gale, 
in  the  field  at  the  further  end  of  the  moat,  and  of 
witnessing  the  beautiful  rush  of  water.  By  means 
of  this  flood-gate,  the  moat  could  be  entirely  emptied. 
if  necessary. 


42  FAITHFUL    WALTEK. 

•'  Why,  the  water  is  lower  than  common,  mstead 
of  being  higher ! "  said  WaUer  to  himself,  as  he 
kneeled  upon  the  bridge  and  held  down  his  lantern, 
as  low  as  he  could  reach.  "  I  can't  see  the  water 
at  all !  Well,  I  declare,  't  is  every  drop  of  it  run 
out,  for  there  are  the  three  great  stones  at  the  bottom 
that  were  too  heavy  to  be  got  up  when  the  mud  was 
cleaned  out  last  winter.  How  angry  uncle  will  be  ! 
It  must  have  been  that  tiresome  boy,  Joe,  that 
opened  the  flood-gate  last  night,  to  lower  the  water, 
and  forgot  to  shut  it  again.  He  had  no  business  to 
touch  it  at  all,  for  he  knows  that  is  my  job  always. 
Now  I  must  go  into  the  field  and  shut  it  down 
again.  'T  is  lucky  I  came  out  to-night.  But  I  '11 
go  and  fetch  the  gin  first." 

When  Walter  reached  the  barn,  he  was  obliged 
to  crawl  on  his  hands  and  knees  through  a  long, 
narrow  passage,  between  sacks  of  corn,  over  which 
some  trusses  of  straw  had  been  placed.  At  the  fur- 
ther end  of  this  cavern,  as  it  may  be  called,  the  gin 
was  set;  for  a  drain  ran  close  by,  which  was  a 
favorite  resort  of  the  long-tailed  game.  Thinking 
it  would  be  dangerous  to  take  the  lantern  among 
such  combustible  materials,  Walter  had  left  it  out- 
side, on  the  floor  of  the  barn ;  but  he  soon  found  the 
gin  in  the  dark,  by  feeling  about  with  a  short  stick, 
and  ascertained  that  a  rat  was  caught  fast  by  the 
neck.     Then  he  crawled  backwards  out  of  his  nar- 


AN    ENCOUISTER.  43 

row  den,  and  when  he  raised  himself  on  his  feet,  to 
his  utter  amazement,  he  was  in  total  darkness  ! 

*'  What  can  have  happened  to  the  lantern?"  said 
he,  feeling  about  for  it  with  his  hands.  "  I  am  sure 
the  candle  was  not  nearly  burnt  out.  Perhaps  I 
left  the  barn-door  open,  and  the  wind  may  have 
blown  it  out,  for  I  know  one  of  the  sides  was 
broken," 

Here  the  poor  boy's  cogitations  were  interrupted 
by  a  violent  blow,  which  beat  his  hat  down  over  his 
eyes ;  and  before  he  could  utter  a  cr}^  his  throat 
was  clasped  by  a  pair  of  unseen  hands  so  tightly, 
that  the  feeling  of  suflbcation,  joined  to  his  terror, 
almost  deprived  him  of  his  senses.  By  degrees  the 
terrible  liands  relaxed  a  little,  but  tightened  again 
instantly,  when  the  trembling  captive  attempted  to 
call  for  help;  and  then  a  low,  grovvding  voice,  which 
once  heard  could  never  be  mistaken,  muttered  in 
his  ear: 

"  Hold  your  tongue,  boy,  will  you  ?  if  you  make 
that  noise  again,  I  '11  twist  your  head  oft'.  "What 
business  have  you  got  out  here  at  this  time  of 
night,  I  should  like  to  know  ?  Now  listen  to  me. 
I  haven't  half  finished  the  job  I  came  about  yet; 
and  if  you  don't  make  a  noise  and  disturb  the 
house,  perhaps  I  mayn't  think  it  worth  while  to 
hurt  you  ;  but  if  you  do  give  me  any  more  of  your 
noise,  I  '11  tie  you  hand  and  foot  and  toss  you  into 


44  FAITHFUL   WALTER. 

the  middle  of  the  little  bonfire  I  shall  light  up  pres- 
ently. Now,  come  with  me,  and  I  '11  show  you 
some  sport." 

Poor  Walter  was  then  half  led,  half  dragged  out 
of  the  barn,  into  the  rick-yard,  into  a  narrow  pas- 
sage between  two  large  haymows,  where  the  ruf- 
fian's evil  designs  were  soon  made  apparent.  Hold- 
ing the  boy  by  the  collar  with  one  hand,  with  the 
other  he  opened  the  door  of  a  dark-lantern,  and 
began  to  complete  the  arrangements  which  Walter's 
unexpected  appearance  had  interrupted.  He  had 
already  raised  a  large  heap  of  fagots  in  the  space 
between  the  haymows,  and  nothing  remained  to  be 
done  but  to  dispose  some  gunpowder  and  brimstone 
among  the  straw,  at  the  bottom  of  the  pile,*in  a  way 
that  would  insure  the  rapid  communication  of  the 
fire  to  every  part  of  it.  The  villain  seemed  to  take 
a  pleasure  in  this  part  of  his  work,  and  muttered  to 
himself  as  he  carefully  arranged  the  materials  : 

"  Now,  farmer  Trimmer,  we  shall  soon  see  !  So, 
so,  this  was  the  hay  that  machine  helped  to  make. 
Very  well  !  people  say  they  have  a  right  to  use 
machines  if  they  like  ;  and  /  have  a  right  to  make  a 
bonfire  if  I  like  ;  that 's  all.  Ha!  ha!  I  wonder  who 
will  be  tired  of  the  sport  first.  Well,  boy,  dost 
understand  what  these  fagots  are  for?" 

Walter  understood  it  all  perfectly.  Naturally  of 
a  very  courageous  disposition,  though,  like  many 


AN    INCENDIARY.  *      45 

Other  bold  spirits,  mild  and  tractable  in  his  behavior 
to  those  he  loved,  the  boy  had  recovered  from  his 
first  terrible  fright,  and  he  watched  the  proceedings 
of  his  ferocious  companion  with  extraordinary  calm- 
ness and  self-possession.  He  saw  what  the  vil- 
lam's  intentions  were,  and  he  determined  to  prevent 
him  from  carrying  them  into  effect,  if  possible. 

"  Uncle  has  taken  care  of  me,"  said  he  to  him- 
self, "  ever  since  I  was  a  baby.  He  never  gave  me 
a  cross  word  in  all  his  life.  He  and  aunt  have 
been  as  kind  to  me  as  if  I  was  their  own  child,  and 
nobody  shall  ever  say  that  I  stood  by  and  saw  their 
property  burnt  without  trying  to  save  it." 

Then  he  said  to  the  incendiary,  who  still  helo 
him  fast  by  the  collar,  while  he  completed  the  ar- 
rangement of  his  combustibles  : 

"  Brindle,  if  you  will  only  go  away  quietly  with- 
out doing  any  mischief,  I  promise  I  '11  never  tell 
anybody  that  I  have  seen  you  here,  to-night." 

The  boy's  clear,  childish  voice  contrasted  strange- 
ly with  the  husky,  growling  throat  of  Brindle,  who 
replied : 

"  Ho  1  ho  I  my  boy,  you  '11  promise,  v/ill  you  ? 
You  are  a  pretty  fellow  !  you  '11  promise  one  minute 
and  tell  a  lie  the  next.  I  'm  too  cunning  a  bird  to 
be  caught  with  that  sort  of  nonsense.  Now,  listen 
to  me:  I  came  fifty  miles  to  do  this  job,  and  I'll 
finish  it  if  I  was  sure  you  would  not  tell,     There, 


46      '  FAITHFUL    WALTER. 

I  think  that  will  do;  I  shall  jast  put  a  light  to  that 
bit  of  touchpaper,  and  then  you  and  I  will  go  up  to 
the  top  of  the  hill  yonder,  and  enjoy  the  blaze. 
Ha!  ha  !  they  won't  find  much  water  in  the  pond  to 
put  it  out  with,  I  have  taken  care  of  that.  But 
mind  our  agreement,  young  fellow !  If  you  keep 
quiet,  I  '11  let  you  go  home  again  as  soon  as  the 
mows  are  well  lighted  up ;  and  then  you  may  tell 
your  uncle  't  was  I  did  the  job,  and  he  may  catch 
me  if  he  can.  But  if  you  offer  to  call  out  before  I 
give  leave — you  understand  me.  D'ye  see  this  lit- 
tle bit  of  a  stick  ?  One  cry,  and  it  shall  be  your 
last ! " 

The  boy  heard  him  in  silence,  and  saw  him  light 
the  touchpaper,  or  slowmatch,  which  appeared  long 
enough  to  burn  for  eight  or  ten  minutes.  Walter 
judged  that  it  would  last  about  that  time,  for  he  had 
lately  assisted  Parsons  in  the  delightful  employ- 
ment of  blasting,  with  gunpowder,  some  trunks  of 
trees  for  fire-wood,  and  he  remembered  the  length 
of  the  touchpaper  they  had  used  to  fire  the  train, 
and  the  time  it  had  burnt  before  the  explosion  took 
place. 

"  Now,  then,"  said  the  incendiary,  "  'tis  all  safe  : 
we  may  as  well  be  off  to  the  hill  and  enjoy  the 
sport  at  our  ease." 

"  D'  ye  think  the  mows  will  make  a  good  blaze, 
Brindle  ?  "  inquired  Walter,  quietly. 


BRir^DLE    DECEIVED.  47 

"A  good  blaze!  Ay,  ay;  better  than  ever  you 
saw  on  Guy  Fawkes'  night.  Come,  I  see  thee  art 
a  sensible  lad.  'T  is  not  thy  fault  that  the  mows 
are  burnt,  and  so  thee  art  determined  to  enjoy  the 
sight  quietly.     Dost  love  a  good  bonfire,  lad  ?" 

"Yes,  sometimes,"  replied  Walter;  "we  had 
better  go  now,  had  n't  we  ?  " 

The  ruffian,  Brindle,  though  generally  cunning 
and  wary  as  an  old  fox,  was  deceived  by  the  boy's 
quiet  and  fearless  manner ;  and  though  he  still  held 
him  fast,  he  followed  his  advice  in  taking  what 
Walter  assured  him  was  a  nearer  way,  across  the 
fields,  to  the  neighboring  hill-top,  instead  of  going 
along  the  lane.  It  icas  a  nearer  way,  but  that  was 
not  Walter's  motive  for  proposing  it;  for  though 
they  would  not  pass  quite  so  near  the  house  as  if 
they  had  followed  the  lane,  he  knew  that  they 
should  be  on  that  side  in  which  were  the  windows 
of  his  uncle's,  and  of  all  the  inhabited  bedrooms, 
except  his  o^^m. 

When  they  were  opposite  that  side  of  the  house, 
Walter  stopped  his  companion,  and  said  to  him  in  a 
whisper : 

"  Brindle,  I  almost  wish  now  that  you  wouldn't 
burn  the  mows.  I  know  they  will  make  a  fine 
blaze,  but  uncle  has  been  kind  to  me,  and  the  hay 
is  worth  a  great  deal  of  money.  So  if  you  will  let 
me  go  back  and  take  the  fire  away,  I  '11  never  tell 


48  FAITHFUL    WALTER. 

anybody  who  put  the  fagots  there,  as  long  as  I  hve. 
I  never  told  a  lie  in  my  life,  and  I  would  n't  tell  a 
lie  to  you  now,  to  save  all  the  hay  in  the  country 
from  being  burnt." 

"  Come  on,"  said  Brindle,"  grasping  his  pris- 
mer's  throat,  for  his  suspicions  were  somewhat 
iroused.  "  Come  on,  directly,  and  hold  your 
tongue,  or  I  '11  strangle  you  ! " 

*'  God  be  merciful  to  me,  then ! "  said  the  boy. 
Then,  with  a  stout  pocket-knife  which  he  had  taken 
out  and  opened  unperceived,  he  gashed  the  back  of 
the  villain's  hand  to  the  bone,  and  as  the  pain 
obliged  him  to  relax  his  grasp,  Walter  shouted  with 
all  his  strength,  "  Help  !  help  !  uncle  James  !  Fire  ! 
Help!" 

The  next  instant  a  heavy  blow  from  the  incendi- 
ary's bludgeon  laid  him  bleeding  and  senseless  on 
the  ground. 


CHAPTER    V. 

"  What  noise  was  that  ? "  said  the  farmer  to  his 
wife ;  *'  didst  hear  a  noise,  or  was  I  dreaming  about 
it?" 

"  I  dare  say  thee  wast,  for  I  heard  nothing.  The 
cock  crowing,  likely  enough." 

The  farmer  thought  that  it  very  likely  was  the 
cock,  and  he  was  on  the  point  of  closing  his  sleepy 
eyes  again,  when  a  faint  gleam  of  light  shone 
across  the  window  for  an  instant. 

"  Wife,  there  's  a  flash  of  lightning !  We  are 
going  to  have  a  thunder-storm." 

"  Oh,  then,  do  get  up  and  shut  the  shutters,  or  I 
shall  be  frightened  to  dearth." 

Mr.  Trimmer  arose  to  comply  with  his  dame's 
request ;  but  before  he  closed  the  shutters  he  stood 
at  the  window  for  a  little  while,  waiting  for  the  next 
flash,  that  he  might  see  in  what  quarter  the  storm 
was  gathering. 

"  The  night  is  as  dark  as  pitch,"  said  he,  opening 
the  window  and  putting  his  head  out ;  "  but  it  don't 
seem  like  a  storm,  and  I  can  hear  no  thunder." 

"  Now,  my  good  man,  do  shut  the  window,  for 
we  shall  have  a  storm,  I  am  sure.  I  can  smell  the 
lightning  already." 

5"  •  4 


50  FAITHFUL   WALTER. 

"  Well,  I  never  could  smell  lightning,  though  I 
have  heard  other  people  say  they  could.  But  I  de- 
clare, I  can  smell  something  now,  though  I  've  got 
a  had  cold  in  my  head.  'T  is  like  a  brimstone 
match,  exactly." 

"  Yes,  that 's  the  sort  of  smell.  I  have  smelt  it 
fifty  times.  There,  now,  do  shut  the  window,  and 
the  shutters  too,  as  close  as  you  can." 

*'  Silence  !  "  said  the  farmer,  in  a  half  whisper,  but 
in  a  tone  which  the  practised  ears  of  Mrs.  Trimmer 
understood  at  once  as  signifying  that  he  was  in 
earnest,  and  would  be  obeyed.  After  a  few  seconds, 
he  added,  as  he  began  to  dress  himself  in  the  utmost 
haste,  "  Don't  be  frightened,  Mary,  but  there  's  mis- 
chief abroad !  I  heard  the  gate  at  the  end  of  the 
Long-patch  fall  to,  as  plainly  as  possible.  I  am 
sure  of  it,  for  I  should  know  the  sound  of  that  gate 
among  a  thousand.  Directly  after  I  heard  some- 
body running,  as  if  for  his  life,  over  the  new-laid 
stones  in  the  lane.  There  's  some  villany  stirring. 
Ah  !  there  it  is,  sure  enough.  I  see  the  light 
now  !  There  's  a  fire  somewhere  behind  the  house ; 
but,  by  the  blessing  of  God,  we  shall  be  in  time  to 
put  it  out  before  it  has  made  much  head.  So,  my 
good  dame,  don't  be  frightened,  but  get  up  and  call 
everybody.  Villains,  I  '11  be  amongst  ye  in  a 
minute  I " 

The  stout  farmer  made  such  a  fearful  clatter,  as 


THE    FIRE.  61 

he  half  ran,  half  jumped  down  the  uncarpeted  stairs, 
that  everybody  in  the  house  was  thoroughly  aroused, 
long  before  the  trembling  Mrs.  Trimmer  could 
knock  at  their  doors.  I  looked  into  Walter's  room, 
as  I  passed,  to  learn  the  cause  of  the  disturbance, 
for  the  poor  woman  w^as  unable  to  give  me  much 
information  on  the  subject;  but  she  sat  on  the  stairs 
sobbing  and  wringing  her  hands,  and  exclaiming, 

"  Ay  !  I  told  ye  so  !  I  told  ye  so  !  The  results  of 
machinery^  indeed !  here  they  are  come  upon  us  at 
last,  for  we  shall  all  be  murdered  or  burnt  alive  !  I 
told  ye  all  that  something  bad  would  come  of  it,  and 
nobody  would  believe  me  ! " 

Finding  that  Walter  was  not  in  his  room,  I  went 
down  into  the  kitchen,  and  then,  through  the  open 
door,  the  cause  of  the  alarm  was  apparent.  A  col- 
umn of  dense  smoke,  illuminated  by  the  fire  under- 
neath, was  rising  up  among  the  mows. 

I  hastened  into  the  yard,  and  found  Mr.  Trimmer 
and  Parsons,  with  hayforks  and  rakes,  throwing  out 
the  blazing  straw  and  fagots  from  the  narrow  space 
where  the  pile  was  laid.  For  some  minutes  the 
issue  was  very  doubtful.  One  of  the  mows  had 
already  kindled,  and  nothing  but  the  greatest  exer- 
tions, on  the  part  of  the  farmer  and  his  trusty  fore- 
man, prevented  the  fire  from  spreading.  However, 
this  was  at  last  accomplished,  by  tearing  down  the 
burning  hay  with  rakes,  till  at  length  the  danger 


52  FAITHFUL   WALTER. 

was  past,  and  all  the  flaming  materials  were  col- 
lected together  in  a  heap  in  an  open  part  of  the 
yard. 

"  Now  God  be  praised  for  all  his  mercies  ! "  ex- 
claimed Mr.  Trimmer,  panting  with  heat  and  exer- 
tion. "  Five  minutes  later,  only  five  minutes  later, 
and  nothing  could  have  saved  the  mows  !  And  if 
the  mows  had  burnt,  the  barns,  and  everything  else 
in  the  yard,  would,  most  likely,  have  gone  too,  with 
the  wind  this  way.  Run  in,  Parsons,  and  tell  your 
mistress  'tis  all  safe.  I  can't  leave  this  heap  till 
the  flame  is  gone  down  a  little,  for  the  villains  have 
taken  care  not  to  leave  us  a  drop  of  water  to  put  it 
out  with." 

I  asked  Mr.  Trimmer  if  he  knew  where  Walter 
was. 

"  In  the  house,  I  believe,  sir,"  replied  he,  "  with 
his  aunt.  I  called  out  to  him  as  I  passed  his  door, 
and  told  him  to  stay  and  take  care  of  her,  for  she 
is  almost  out  of  her  senses  wdth  fright.  But  did  ye 
ever  see  anybody  in  such  a  mess  as  I  am,  Mr. 
Ernest?" 

I  now,  for  the  first  time,  observed  that  he  was 
plastered  with  black  mud  from  head  to  foot.  He 
said  that  as  he  crossed  the  bridge,  he  had  plunged  a 
milk-pail  down  hastily,  intending  to  bring  it  up  full 
of  water ;  but  not  meeting  with  the  resistance  he 
had  expected,  he  lost  his  balance  and  fell  over  into 


SEARCH   FOR   WALTER.  53 

the  muddy  bed  of  the  moat ;  and  with  this  most  con- 
vincing proof  that  the  water  had  been  drawn  off,  the 
poor  farmer  first  became  aware  of  the  sly  trick  that 
had  been  played  him. 

Scarcely  had  we  begun  to  recover  a  little  from 
our  fright,  when  we  were  thrown  into  a  fresh  con- 
sternation, by  finding  that  Walter  had  not  been  seen 
since  the  alarm  of  fire  was  first  given.  When 
every  part  of  the  premises  had  been  searched  with- 
out success,  and  poor  Mrs.  Trimmer  and  her  maids 
were  uttering  lamentable  cries  of  distress,  the  farmer 
beckoned  me  aside. 

"  I  need  n't  ask  what  you  think  of  this  terrible 
business,  sir,"  said  he ;  "I  can  see  it  all  in  your 
face,  plainly  enough.  I  remember  now  that  I  found 
the  kitchen  door  unbolted.  The  poor  boy  must 
have  run  out  into  the  yard,  before  any  of  us,  and  the 
villains  have  murdered  him  !  Oh  !  if  it  had  pleased 
God  that  every  slick  and  straw  belonging  to  me  had 
been  burnt  to  ashes,  rather  than  that  boy  should 
have  come  to  harm,  I  should  have  been  a  happy 
man  !  I  know  I  must  not  complain,  but  I  loved 
Walter!  we  all  loved  him;  nobody  could  help  loving 
him  !  Now  I  must  ride  off  to  the  town,  to  give 
information  to  the  magistrates ;  though  what  they 
can  do,  I  'm  sure  I  don't  know." 

I  went  with  i\Ir.  Trimmer  into  the  stable,  to  hold 
the  lantern  for  him  while  he  saddled  his  horse,  for 


64  PAITHFTJL   WALTER. 

Parsons  had  been  dispatched  with  the  bad  tidings 
to  the  nearest  neighbor.  The  farmer  was  already 
in  the  saddle,  when  a  piercing  shriek  of  distress 
reached  our  ears,  from  the  house. 

"  They  have  found  him ! "  said  he,  hastily  dis- 
mounting from  his  horse.  "  They  have  found  the 
boy,  and.  he  is  dead  I " 

As  we  entered  the  kitchen,  Parsons  was  endeav- 
oring to  comfort  his  mistress.  "  He  's  not  dead, 
missis,  I  am  sure ;  though  I  'm  afraid  he  's  hurt 
badly  enough ;  but  he  is'nt  dead,  for  he  keeps  on 
groaning  and  moaning;  and  that's  how  'twas  I 
found  him  as  I  went  across  the  fields.  I  did  n't  like 
to  take  him  up  in  my  arms,  for  fear  I  should  hurt 
him,  for  perhaps  some  of  his  poor  bones  are  broken  ; 
but  if  master  likes,  we  two  can  carry  him  easily  in 
this  great  arm-chair." 

When  poor  Walter  was  brought  into  the  house,  I 
felt  convinced  that  the  terrible  wound  he  had  re- 
ceived on  his  head  would  prove  fatal  in  a  few 
hours ;  for  he  was  perfectly  insensible,  and,  though 
he  still  breathed,  it  was  in  a  heavy,  laborious  man- 
ner, and  with  a  sound  resembling  snoring, — a  fear- 
ful token  that  the  brain  was  injured.  Mr.  Trimmer 
galloped  off  for  a  surgeon,  who,  when  he  came, 
either  could  not  or  would  not  give  us  any  consola- 
tion; for  he  was  one  of  those  brutal  practitioners 
who  disgrace  their  profession  by  their  rude  and 


A   SURGEON.  55 

ungentlemanly  behavior,  and  who  seem  to  think 
that,  because  a  late  celebrated  surgeon,  (the  letters 
of  whose  name  most  fortunately  can  be  transposed 
into  '^Johnny  the  Bear^'')  was  both  surly  and  skil- 
ful^ therefore  it  is  only  necessary  for  them  to 
ape  his  rough,  uncivil  manners,  to  make  their 
patients  believe  that  they  possess  his  talents  also. 
However,  this  bear,  though  he  would  not  answer 
any  questions,  appeared  to  take  great  pains  in 
examining  and  dressing  the  poor  boy's  wound; 
and  when  that  operation  was  finished,  he  conde- 
scended to  swallow  a  very  potent  draught  of  brandy 
and  water.  Thinking  that  this  might  have  the 
effect  of  mollifying  his  surly  temper  a  little,  Mrs. 
Trimmer  ventured  to  inquire  if  he  thought  the  boy 
would  recover. 

"  Recover ! "  said  he,  "  what  in  the  name  of  non- 
sense does  the  woman  mean  by  asking  such  a  stu- 
pid question  as  that  ?  How  can  I  tell  whether  the 
boy  will  recover  or  not?  D'ye  think  that  his  skull 
is  made  of  glass,  that  I  can  look  into  his  head  and 
see  what 's  the  matter  with  the  brain.  The  boy  has 
had  a  terrible  blow,  I  tell  you,  and  nobody  can  say 
what  the  consequence  may  be.  Now,  my  good 
man,  is  my  horse  ready  ? " 

It  was  more  than  three  weeks  before  time  solved 
the  question,  which  the  surly  doctor  could  not 
answer.     By  careful  nursing,  and,  to  give  the  bear 


56  FAITHFUL  Walter. 

his  due,  by  very  skilful  surgical  treatment,  "Walter 
did  recover,  though  it  was  many  months  before  he 
was  restored  to  his  former  health  and  strength.  He 
was  incapable  of  answering  any  questions  for  seve- 
ral days  after  the  night  of  the  fire,  therefore  Brindle 
had  time  to  escape  to  a  great  distance,  before  it  was 
known  that  he  was  the  culprit,  though  his  conduct 
in  the  hayfield  made  us  strongly  suspect  that  he 
was  concerned  in  the  outrage.  But  the  man's  ex- 
traordinary malformation  of  face  and  body  proved 
his  ruin.  Having  some  little  talent  in  drawing  like- 
nesses, I  made  from  memory  a  sketch  of  the  incen- 
diary, which  was  printed  at  the  head  of  the  hand- 
bills offering  a  reward  for  his  apprehension;  and 
though  it  certainly  did  not  merit  the  praise  bestowed 
upon  it  by  Walter,  who  called  it  "  a  most  beautiful 
likeness  of  Polyphemus,"  it  proved  sufficiently  cor- 
rect for  the  purpose.  You  might  have  seen  an  out- 
line of  Brindle's  long,  straggling  limbs  and  short- 
ened body,  posted  conspicuously  in  almost  every 
town  and  village  in  the  south  of  England.  "  'T  will 
find  him  out  I "  said  the  farmer.  "  We  shall  catch 
him,  sooner  or  later,  if  he  is  above  ground." 

It  did  find  him  out,  though  he  was  not  above 
ground;  for,  after  remaining  concealed  for  more 
than  six  months,  Brindle  Avas  at  length  appre- 
hended, many  fathoms  beneath  the  surface,  working 
in  a  mine  in  Cornwall.     At  his  trial,  Walter  was 


BRINDLE    APPREHENDED.  67 

the  principal  evidence  against  him ;  but  his  mut- 
tered threat  of  vengeance  in  the  hayfield  was  not 
forgotten.  The  man  had  found  the  means  of  en- 
gaging the  services  of  a  lawyer,  who  did  his  best 
for  his  client,  and  strove,  by  a  bullying  cross-exami- 
nation, to  weaken  Walter's  testimony.  As  easily 
might  he  have  overturned  a  church,  by  pushing 
against  it  with  his  shoulder.  Confident  in  truth 
and  innocence,  the  boy  remained  firm  and  un- 
daunted, and  the  most  vexatious  and  intricate  ques- 
tionings of  his  adversary  could  not  beguile  him  into 
saying  a  single  word  more  than  the  truth;  conse- 
quently he  was  in  no  danger  of  contradicting  him- 
self in  his  answers.  I  believe  the  jury  had  almost 
decided  upon  their  verdict  before  the  trial  was  half 
over,  and  Brindle  was  condemned  to  pass  the 
remainder  of  his  days  in  banishment. 

As  I  am  writing  the  last  pages  of  this  little  his- 
tory, the  delicious  fragrance  of  new-made  hay,  from 
the  adjoining  meadow,  breathes  in  through  the  open 
window,  and  reminds  me  that  a  year  has  passed 
away  since  the  gathering  in  of  the  last  crop,  which, 
but  for  Walter's  courage  and  determination,  would 
nave  been  consumed  by  the  revengeful  incendiary's 
I'orch.  Occasionally,  as  it  approaches  the  house,  1 
can  hear  the  whirring  noise  of  the  haymaking  ma- 
chine ;  for  the  farmer,  not  deterred  by  the  disasters 
of  last  year,  is  again  availing  himself  of  the  services 


58  FAITHFUL  WALTER. 

of  this  useful  invention.  He  is  even  seriously  con- 
templating the  erection  of  a  thrashing  machine. 

"  All  the  incendiary  villains  in  the  world,"  he 
says,  "  shall  not  frighten  me  from  doing  a  thing, 
when  I  know  that  it  is  right  and  proper  to  he  done. 
However,  we  need  n't  put  ourselves  into  a  fidget 
about  it,  for  we  have  heard  nothing  of  these  nightly 
fires  for  some  time,  so  let  us  hope  that  the  people 
are  getting  wiser  or  better." 

Brindle's  knock-down  argument,  although  it  very 
nearly  deprived  Walter  of  his  life,  has  not  altered 
his  opinions  in  the  least.  I  believe  he  knows  a 
great  part  of  "  The  Results  of  Machinery  "  by  heart ; 
and  his  uncle  often  appeals  to  nephew  Walter,  when 
he  finds  himself  likely  to  be  overcome  in  his  discus- 
sions with  his  brother  farmers  on  the  subject. 

As  for  my  kind  hostess,  she  still  calls  herself  a 
determined  enemy  to  the  use  of  machinery ;  though, 
with  great  good  humor,  she  soon  becomes  partially 
reconciled  to  any  improvements  of  that  nature 
which  her  husband  introduces.  The  subject  is 
still  frequently  discussed  by  the  members  of  the 
Trimmer  family  ;  but  if  differences  of  opinion  were 
always  maintained  with  their  moderation  and  good 
temper,  the  world  we  live  in  would  be  a  quiet  rest- 
ing-place indeed. 


She  resembled  a  batterflj",  &c p.  59. 


VERONICA, 

OR   THE    BENEFITS   OF   SICKNESS. 

Little  Veronica  had  a  very  lively  temper ; 
she  was  seldom  grave,  and  always  in  motion. 
Her  brother  John  was  not  far  wrong  in  giving 
her  the  name  of  Chatterbox ;  for  she  was  for- 
ever speaking,  and  never  at  a  loss  for  some- 
thing about  which  to  talk,  argue,  or  laugh. 

"  When  I  am  near  Veronica,  the  chatter- 
box,*' said  John,  ''  I  am  never  dull.  She  talks 
so  much,  that  the  hours  seem  minutes."  Oth- 
ers made  the  same  remark;  and  all  who 
wished  for  diversion  were  very  fond  of  the 
society  of  this  little  girl. 

But  the  giddmess  of  Veronica  was  the  cause 
of  much  uneasiness  to  her  parents.  She  now 
approached  the  tenth  year  of  her  age,  and  had 
received  but  little  instruction.  Her  mother 
wished  to  give  her  a  knowledge  of  female 
occupations;  but  her  progress  was  slow,  not 
being  able  to  keep  herself  quiet  for  a  single 
instant.  She  resembled  a  butterfly  sporting 
about  from  one  flower  to  another. 


WANT    OF    PERSEVERANCE.  61 

*^Pay  attention,  Veronica,"  her  mother 
would  say;  "I  wish  to  show  you  how  this  is 
to  be  knit."  For  some  minutes  she  gave  heed  ; 
but  soon,  her  eyes  wandering  to  some  other 
object,  she  was  anything  but  attentive  to  what 
her  mother  said;  and  thus  committed  more 
than  one  fault. 

"You  will  never  do  anything  well,"  said 
her  mother,  in  a  displeased  tone;  ''you  are 
always  absent;  your  thoughts  wander  here 
and  there ;  if  you  wish  to  learn  anything,  you 
must  give  it  your  undivided  attention,  and  not 
leave  it  until  you  have  perfectly  learned  it." 

Yeronica  also  wanted  perseverance;  she 
was  seldom  seen  to  finish  anything.  One  day 
she  said  to  herself,  "I  wish  to  knit  a  pair  of 
gloves  for  John ;  I  shall  present  them  to  him 
on  his  birthday ;  this  will  give  him  inexpres- 
sible pleasure."  She  went  to  her  mother,  and 
begged  of  her  to  show  her  immediately  how 
to  set  about  the  work ;  and  her  mother  saw 
her  v/ith  astonishment,  devote  so  much  atten- 
tion to  it,  that  in  a  few  minutes  she  had  no 
further  need  of  her  instruction. 

But  what  was  the  good  of  it?  Scarcely 
had  Yeronica  worked  at  the  gloves  for  a  quar- 
6 


62  VERONICA. 

\er  of  an  hour,  when  she  became  weary  of  her 
occupation  ;  she  commenced  makmg  a  pair  of 
Doots  for  her  cat,  which  she  soon  left  off  to  cut 
a  paper  tree,  for  her  friend  Charlotte ;  and 
scarcely  had  she  finished  it,  when  she  began  to 
play  with  her  thimble,  then  to  sing  and  dance, 
and  thought  no  more  of  her  sewing  or  knitting. 

She  returned  several  times  to  her  work ;  but 
her  giddiness  and  want  of  application,  pre- 
vented her  finishing  it.  John's  birthday  ar- 
rived, Veronica  had  almost  completed  the 
gloves,  but  half  of  the  thumb  and  the  tops  of 
the  fingers  were  still  wanting;  she  was  in 
consequence  unable  to  offer  her  gift. 

Their  friend  Charlotte  made  John  a  present 
of  a  little  pocket-book,  which  she  had  made 
all  herself,  with  which  he  was  highly  delight- 
ed; and  Yeronica  then  repented  not  having 
finished  his  gloves.  Her  mother,  however, 
begged  her  to  recollect  that  it  was  her  thought- 
lessness alone  that  had  prevented  it. 

Veronica  was  equally  careless  in  what  con- 
cerned her  more  •  serious  studies ;  she  had 
excellent  masters,  whose  patience  she  often 
exhausted,  through  her  want  of  attention. 

John  made  great  progress  in  his  studies,  but 


VERONICA.  63 

Veronica  was  far  behind  him:  it  could  not 
be  otherwise ;  her  mind  was  always  distract- 
ed; instead  of  listening  to  what  her  master 
said,  she  played  with  her  fingers,  chattered, 
thought  of  the  cat,  of  the  picture-books,  of  her 
friend  Charlotte,  of  John's  dog,  and  every  sort 
of  trifle;  if  afterwards  her  master  questioned 
her  about  what  she  had  been  reading,  she  did 
not  answer,  or  had  perhaps  taken  it  in  a 
wrong  sense.  Thus  it  happened  that,  though 
in  the  main  good  and  amiable,  Veronica  was 
ill-informed,  and  wanting  in  agreeable  man- 
ners ;  and  it  was  not  without  reason  that  her 
parents  felt  annoyed  at  her  thoughtless  and 
giddy  conduct,  while  they  used  every  means 
to  alter  it. 

However,  what  the  latter  could  not  succeed 
in  effecting,  was  brought  about  by  illness. 
Veronica  fell  sick:  the  physicians  gave  no 
hope;  and  her  parents,  who  tenderly  loved 
their  daughter,  were  in  despair;  when  sud- 
denly a  favorable  alteration  took  place,  and 
Veronica  was  restored  to  life.  What  joy  for 
her  kind  parents  and  her  fond  brother !  her 
life  was  spared ;  but  she  was  obliged  to  keep 
her  bed  for  several  weeks  longer,  to  recover 
her  strength.      This  illness  had  a  powerful 


64  GOOD    RESOLUTIONS. 

effect  on  her  mind,  and  whole  deportment. 
She  became  more  serious;  and,  perceiving 
that  she  would  be  confined  for  some  time 
longer  to  her  bed,  she  entreated  her  parents  or 
her  brother  to  read  to  her  on  good  and  useful 
subjects,  to  which  she  paid  great  attention, 
and  retained  nearly  all  she  heard;  she  also 
read  to  herself,  and  improved  considerably. 

"  If  I  recover,"  said  she,  ''  I  will  entirely 
change  my  conduct;  I  will  be  diligent  and 
industrious." 

Veronica  kept  her  good  resolutions;  her 
illness  completely  altered  her;  she  gave  her 
parents  entire  satisfaction,  and  was  distin- 
guished for  her  zeal  and  perseverance,  her 
rational  conduct,  and  ability;  and  was  be- 
loved by  every  one.  She  talked  less  than 
formerly,  but  became  more  thoughtful;  she 
was  less  fond  of  play,  but  much  more  indus- 
trious. 

Veronica's  father  one  day  addressed  his 
wife,  with  tears  in  his  eyes:  "All  that  the 
Lord  does  is  good,"  said  he;  "even  the  ills 
He  sends  us  tend  to  our  happiness;  our 
daughter  would  not  now  be  so  gentle  and 
amiable,  had  he  not  tried  her  by  a  painful 
illness." 


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